Darden Restaurants, Inc.

Orlando-based Darden Restaurants is considered the world's largest casual dining restaurant company in terms of market share and annual sales. Restaurant entrepreneur Bill Darden, who opened the first Red Lobster restaurant in Lakeland in 1968, founded the company. Darden is considered one of the pioneers in the development of full-service chain restaurants in the United States.

Since its founding, it has grown to operate more than 1,700 restaurants in North America with about 170,000 employees. Darden was a subsidiary of General Mills from 1970 until 1995, when it was spun off as a separately held publicly traded company. The company's headquarters was moved to Orlando when it became a division of General Mills.

Darden is most closely associated with its two largest restaurant brands: Red Lobster and Olive Garden. Both of those chains now have more than 600 locations. The company's attempt to diversify its restaurant holdings has had mixed results. In 1995, Darden shut down an internally developed Chinese restaurant chain called China Coast. Since its spin-off, Darden has also created a barbecue and sports bar-themed restaurant group called Smokey Bones, a Caribbean-themed chain called Bahama Breeze, and a higher-end group of restaurants called Seasons 52. The company announced its intention to sell its Smokey Bones restaurants in May 2007, admitting that the brand did not have the potential to become a national chain. In August, Darden agreed to purchase Rare Hospitality International, which operates the LongHorn Steakhouse and Capital Grille restaurant chains, for an estimated value of $1.4 billion.

Clarence Otis, who took over the company from long-time chief Joe Lee in 2005, serves as chairman and chief executive officer. Darden posted $5.6 billion in annual sales in fiscal year 2007. Its shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol DRI.

Related "Darden Restaurants, Inc." Articles

Binda and Keir Singh nostalgically recall their childhood raised on a farm in eastern Punjab, India, at the foothills of the Himalayas.
That memory was a key ingredient in the brothers’ recipe for their new Indian restaurant Ananda, which opened in...

— First Lady Michelle Obama applauded the parent company of Olive Garden and Red Lobster Thursday for pledging to cut calories and sodium at its restaurants over the next 10 years.Speaking at the Olive Garden, a restaurant known for its all-you-can eat...

Activist investment firm Starboard Value says retailer Macy's could boost its share price by spinning off its real estate into a separate company or forming a joint venture, saying the shares are worth almost double their current price. Companies...

Norwegian Cruise Line has appointed hospitality veteran Drew Madsen as its president and chief operating officer, the Miami-based cruise company announced.
He brings more than 30 years of leadership experience in the hospitality and consumer products...

I joke around quite a bit in this space, but today I address the greatest threat America is facing: a reduction in the number of free breadsticks served at Olive Garden restaurants.
A group of "activist investors" -- the worst kind of investors...

Unlimited garlic breadsticks have been a staple at Olive Garden, but an activist investor is calling on the Italian food chain to give one or maybe two servings of the carbs to patrons.
Doing so would reduce "massive unnecessary waste" and save...

Many part-timers are facing a double whammy from President Obama's Affordable Care Act.
The law requires large employers offering health insurance to include part-time employees working 30 hours a week or more. But rather than provide healthcare to...